When I was a child there was always a part of playground culture where everyone would try to one up the last person who had everyone's attention. Going high on a swing? Well, I’ll try to go higher. Hang a long time from the monkey bars? I’ll try and hang longer. And so on. I remember one day in particular in Elementary School when someone claimed they could run farther than me. They didn’t know that I had asthma and that they were probably right. It didn’t stop me from trying to best them even. What did happen is that I failed to run farther, or even as far, as they had. I didn’t have the endurance.

I was reminded of these events this week in the wake of the national elections. Oh, I know there are temptations to compare our electoral process to a playground but that wouldn’t be fair to the election or the playground.

Instead, I’m reflecting on the feelings I had after not measuring up to my peers in elementary school. I remember feeling broken, wrong, and less. All of that was wrapped up in this one event and it weighed me down. I learned that I was good at other things and grew to appreciate myself for those qualities over time. I even outgrew the asthma. Endurance wasn’t everything in the world.

It’s tempting to wrap all of our emotions into an election. To engage the world in a moment of winners and losers. To take the outcome of a single event and hold it up as what’s true.

As Christian’s we know that God is calling us to be changed. That we are constantly transformed by the power and love of God. Any single moment is always the gateway to the next moment where the justice and truth of God might be more fulfilled in the world through our actions. We know that change is a part of our faith.

As a Sophomore in College I had my parents ship me my trusted bicycle and I began to ride it again as I had (forgive the pun) religiously in my teenage years. A few months later a few friends and I decided to take a long ride together around town. We rode for 16 miles. At the end both my friends were worn out and one commented to me that I didn’t look tired. I remember answering, “I’m not really. I never used to track how far I rode. I guess it was farther than I thought.”

There are times in our lives when we can’t match our own hopes. There are other times when we may not even know our own strength or how much has changed over time. Sometimes, those are the exact same moment.

Know that no matter what we are called forward by our God into what comes next, no matter what that is, and that we are blessed with the grace to bring God’s Kingdom closer.

In peace,

Rev. Deacon Chip Russell